NHS board apologises after just 6% of patients with chronic pain seen in time

A health board has apologised after the latest figures showed just 6% of patients suffering from chronic pain saw a specialist for help within the 18-week waiting time.

Liz Moore, the director for acute services at NHS Ayrshire and Arran, said the board “sincerely apologises to any patient who has had to wait longer than is acceptable for an appointment with the pain management service”.

In the last three months of 2017, 235 patients had their first appointment with the pain management service at NHS Ayrshire and Arran.

Of those 14 had been waiting 18 weeks or less – the target set by the Scottish Government – with 221 people waiting longer than this.

Scottish Conervatives said that was “verging on scandalous” while Labour has called for nationwide review of waiting times for chronic pain services.

Across Scotland these specialist services saw 2,616 new patients in the period October to December last year, with less than three quarters (72.3%) seen within the 18 week target.

2,616 Scots had their first appointment at a chornic pain clinic in October to december 2017, with 72.3% seeing someone within 18 weeks

In NHS Ayrshire and Arran just 6% of patients seen in this quarter got their appaointment in the target time

Scottish Conservative health spokesman Miles Briggs said: “Life can be utterly miserable for someone living with chronic pain.

“To make them wait more than 18 weeks for an appointment is verging on scandalous, and it’s hard to see what the excuse for this could be.

“The national average of 72.3 per cent is bad enough, but for one health board to be seeing just 6% of people in this time is shocking.”

Labour health spokesman Anas Sarwar said: “It is now time for a review on chronic pain waiting times.

“The standard has not been met since the government began regularly reporting performance, and there are clearly issues in certain health boards.

“Across Scotland over 7,000 patients had to wait longer than they should have to for their first appointment

“Ministers now need to ask tough questions about why this is happening.

“After a decade of SNP government, these figures are simply not good enough.”

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